Warhol Tops Picasso Sales, Richter Leading Living Artist

Works by the U.S. pop artist fetched $380.3 million in
sales in 2012, also beating Pablo Picasso, according to figures
compiled by the database Artnet (ART) for Bloomberg News. The two
western artists -- who died in 1987 and 1973 respectively -- had
totals exceeding those for 80-year-old Gerhard Richter, the top
living artist, with Zhang tumbling to fourth place from first.

The rankings reflect the increasing dominance of western
postwar and contemporary works in the international art market.
Auctions in this category at Sotheby’s, Christie’s International
and Phillips de Pury & Co. in New York in November raised a
record $1.1 billion, more than twice the total of the previous
week’s Impressionist sales, where Picasso traditionally shines.

“Contemporary art is where the dynamic energy is at
auctions,” Jonathan P. Binstock, senior adviser in postwar and
contemporary art at Citi Private Bank Art Advisory & Finance,
said in an interview. “The market is selective and concentrated
on works by certain artists. The instant recognizability of
masterpieces by Warhol and Richter makes them well suited to
performing well.”

The ranking of auction sales for artists born after 1880
shows demand for Warhol barely exceeded the $379.4 million
raised in 2011.

Munch Record

This last year, Picasso lost his long-held reputation as
the world’s priciest artist at auction. “The Scream” by Edvard Munch (1863-1944) became the most expensive artwork at a public
sale when it fetched $119.9 million at Sotheby’s, New York, in
May. The previous high had been the $106.5 million paid for
Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust” in May 2010.

Picasso’s total auction sales were also down, slipping to
$334.7 million last year from $366 million. The average sale
price declined to $1.5 million from a record $1.6 million,
according to data supplied by Artnet. All its figures include
auction-house fees.

“Supply is the problem,” said the London-based art
adviser Wendy Goldsmith. “There weren’t as many good examples
from the right periods coming up for auction last year. The
market still loves Picasso. People just don’t want to let them
go.”

Statue Silkscreen

Picasso’s 1932 “Nature Morte aux Tulipes” was the 10th
most expensive artwork sold at auction in 2012 when it fetched
$41.5 million at Sotheby’s (BID) New York in November. The following
week, Warhol’s 1962 “Statue of Liberty” silkscreen raised
$43.8 million at Christie’s.

The Spanish-born artist was top of Artnet’s rankings in
2010 with $386 million of auction sales.

Richter’s $298.9 million total in 2012 was a 48.8 percent
increase on 2011, putting him in third place. The German painter
ranked sixth in 2011.

Boosted by the record 21.3 million pounds ($34.2 million)
for a 1994 abstract owned by Eric Clapton at Sotheby’s in
October, Richter this year joined a select club of post-1880
artists whose all-time value of auction sales has exceeded $1
billion, according to Artnet.

“It’s been an incredible two years for Richter,” Binstock
said. “There’s a consensus that he belongs to the top echelon
of artists. There’s intelligence in his market, though demand
does tend to be specific for abstracts from the 1980s and
1990s.”

Auction sales of Zhang, who died in 1983, slumped to $241.6
million from $782.4 million. Economic and political uncertainty
reduced domestic demand for Chinese art in 2012, dealers said.

Sales were relatively smaller for the former contemporary
art market darlings Jeff Koons and Damien Hirst. Koons was
ranked the 31st biggest-selling artist in the list with $43.8
million of sales, an increase of 5.1 percent on 2011. Hirst
ranked 42nd with $28.9 million, a decline of 10.2 percent on the
year before.